How can I garden with my kids?
If you have the space, give them some land. I don’t mean you need to transfer 40 acres over to your child, but even a 5’x5’ patch of land is enough for produce and/or flowers. I have found that the easiest way to garden with my kids is to help them build raised garden beds that sit within the boundaries of my own garden. We get to garden in the same general area, but the raised bed clearly defines their space and is easier for them when it comes to controlling weeds and maintaining the soil. You don’t need to spend a fortune, either, on the raised beds. We went to the Habitat for Humanity ReStore and purchased shelving materials and made each child a garden box. They love to choose their own seeds to plant each year and get more excited about the harvest than I could have imagined.

If you don’t have the yard space, invest in small patio planter boxes or pots for each child. They can plant fruits, vegetables, or flowers in them and keep them on a patio or even in front of a window. If you are even shorter than that on space, give your kids the experience of gardening with nothing more than a plastic cup, some paper towels, and popcorn seeds. Shred the paper towels and layer some seeds in the glass among the towel piece, keeping the seeds near the edge so that your kids can watch them sprout. Add water and sunlight and soon there will be roots snaking along the inside of the plastic cup, and curiosity and connections developing in your young child’s mind.

What does gardening teach?
Science – When you stop to think about it, all forms of life start with a seed. Kids who garden are able to tangibly be a part of a living thing growing from a seed. The science lessons alone seem innumerable, from how the seeds travel, to what things plant life needs to survive, to the relationships between plants and animals. Just take one stroll through the grocery store with your kids and try to find an aisle where plants are not a part of the products.

Patience – We live in a world where things can be provided on demand and are available at the touch of our fingertips. Gardening brings us back to a place where we have to wait – something that kids especially can have a hard time understanding. When a child gardens he has to learn to wait for the right time to grow, the first sprout to emerge, and the reward of the blossom or harvest to arrive.

Nutrition – My kids are never as eager to eat their fruits and vegetables as when they grow them on their own. They have even come to a point where even the picky eaters will try new things if they have seen them grow from seed to produce – it somehow takes the mystery out of the new food. Not only are the kids more willing to eat the healthier food options, but they learn about the connections between the color values of vegetables, such as the darker lettuce varieties providing more nutrients and being easier to grow because they tend to be stronger plants.

Social Responsibility – Kids learn very quickly through gardening that their plants won’t survive and thrive if the soil is not nurtured. Gardening gives children a quick study in environmental responsibility, including how plant roots drink up whatever is in the soil (bad or good) and then pass that on to us as consumers. Growing our own food also teaches children about self-sustaining lives where there is less waste and pollution (you don’t need to pull a wrapper off of your home-grown head of lettuce).

In cultures across the world farming plays significant roles in daily lives of people and teaching children to garden fosters greater appreciation and understanding of the importance of growing plants. Try to eat a meal each week where only locally grown plants are served and your child will learn what many people the world over do every day.

My 91-year-old grandmother who is healthy, wealthy, and wise still says that the feeling of dirt between her fingers is one of the best feelings there is. From a farm girl to a great-grandmother who is the landlord of farmland, I am so grateful she instilled in her family the values and joy of gardening.

Related posts:

1. 10 Tips for Better Communication with Your Child
2. Why Your Child Needs Art
3. How to Give Your Child the World Through Volunteering

But it’s not easy getting kids to eat vegetables. They seem to have a mindset built in that says NO loud and clear, especially to anything green.  Cooking with your kids is one great way to solve this problem. When you cook with your children they are more open to trying new things. Who wouldn’t want to taste what they just created? So grab your apron and your child and get ready to enjoy those vegetables.

Let Your Kids Pick a Recipe

When you cook with your kids another sneaky way to get them to eat things like vegetables is to let them choose the recipe. Now keep in mind if you just hand them a cookbook they may go straight to the dessert department. This is easily solved by limiting their choices. You have three or four recipes already chosen and ask them, “So, which one of these do you want to help me cook tonight?” They think they are making the decision when you have already decided. Of course, all of them will feature a healthy vegetable.

If your children are younger instead of a recipe you might suggest trying a single new vegetable. You can say something like, “I think I would like to try eggplant. Would you like that or do you think we should learn to cook squash or peas?” You may be surprised at the things your kids will eat when you cook with them.

Cooking Together is Fun

When parents cook with their kids they build bonds. A lot of messes happen in the kitchen but so does a lot of laughter and fun. Cooking together lets your children learn a needed skill, get creative and spend time with you.

Another great way to get the vegetables in there is to have them help you plan the menu. Naturally incorporating at least one vegetable into every meal.  Teach them fun ways to include vegetables into foods. For example, grated zucchini squash sautéed and added to everything from meatloaf to scrambled eggs blends in with the stronger tastes of other foods. Salads are fun to make and a great way to practice colors with preschoolers. Red tomatoes, yellow squash, green peppers – challenge them to add as many colors as they can. So start spending time in the kitchen with your kids cooking. Not only will they enjoy eating their vegetables more but you just may become their favorite chef.

Related posts:

1. Teach Your Kids to Love Learning
2. Teach Your Kids to Say “No!”
3. 7 Lessons Our Kids Teach Us